Far From Here
by Laura-Grace
Summary: Laili had been barely 14 when she came. When she gave birth barely two weeks later, villagers in Dawnfaith doubted she could handle the child alone. But 15 years later, 10 years after the child’s “death”, the truth is revealed…
1. 1988

Far From Here

_Laili had been barely 14 when she came. When she gave birth barely two weeks later, villagers in Dawnfaith doubted she could handle the child alone. But 15 years later, 10 years after the child's "death", the truth is revealed…_

A/N: So? Whaddaya think? Wait, you have to read the fic first, don't you? Okay, then, read it and then review it.

DISCLAIMER: I own only Sebastien, Julien, Laili, Dak and all of Dawnfaith. Yup. It's true.

LYRICS: _Reach_, Gloria Estefan

**_Chapter 1: 1988_**

**Some dreams live on in time forever.**

**Those dreams, you want with all your heart.**

**And I'll do whatever it takes,**

**Follow through with the promise I made,**

**Put it all on the line,**

**What I hope for at last would be mine.**

            14-year-old Laili leaned her head against the cool windowpane of the train. It was sweltering hot, and her baby was kicking in protest of the heat. She laid a gentle hand on her stomach and the baby settled down slightly for a second but then started to punch instead. 

'You're going to be a fighter, I can say that safely,' Laili thought semi-fondly. 'And here I was thinking you wouldn't even live this long, not with… our current circumstances.' She sighed again. 'But I guess I have Julien to thank that we have somewhere to call home. And just in time too.'

As the train pulled into the station at Sunsrest, Laili disembarked to find a middle-aged woman with a son probably a year older than Laili, at the most.

"You Laili Hiwatari?" the woman asked kindly, eyes taking in the disheveled figure before her. Laili nodded. "All right. I'm Susanna Camden, this is my son David."

"Most people call me Dak." David interrupted, a small smile playing at the edge of his features. "Dunno why, but they do."

As Susanna loaded Laili's two small duffels into the trunk of her car, she mulled over it.

This Laili girl had been a looker before she had gotten pregnant, she could tell this right off. Glistening black hair with a hint of navy blue, pale skin, crimson eyes… she had probably turned a fair few heads in her day. That would be how she wound up in this state, anyhow.

**If I could reach higher,**

**Just for one moment, touch the sky,**

**From that one moment in my life,**

**I'm gonna be stronger,**

**Know that I've tried my very best,**

**I'd put my spirit to the test,**

**If I could reach…**

It took a few hours to get to Dawnfaith from Sunsrest. When they finally arrived, the rest of the Camdens, Susanna's husband Wilhelm and her 14-year-old daughter Daniela, were waiting at the tiny cabin that had been procured for Laili and her soon-arriving little one.

Laili managed a small smile at Daniela, who was gaping openly at her. "Hello." She said, speaking for the first time since she had gotten off the train. Her voice was a soft, cultured tone, betraying her high-class upbringing.

Over the next two weeks, Laili quickly charmed her way into the closely-knit community, with the help of Dak Camden, who was rumoured to be quite smitten with the girl.

**Some days are meant to be remembered.**

**Those days we rise above the stars.**

**So, I'll go the distance this time,**

**Seeing more the higher I climb**

**That the more I believe,**

**All the more that this dream will be mine.**

It was a cold December morning when Susanna was called out of her warm bed to the news that Laili had gone into labour.

When she arrived at the cabin, Laili was already in distress. She was really too young to understand that this happened to every woman in labour. She was convinced she was dying. A sheltered girl, no doubt.

"Laili, I want you to _calm down," Susanna soothed as her assistant Alaena handed over the necessary tools. (A/N: Well, I dunno! I'm only 15! What do I look like, an obstetrician?!) "All right? Deep breaths, then I want you to push for ten seconds."_

Obligingly, Laili took a few deep breaths and then pushed.

It took a few hours, but finally, it was done and Susanna told the tearful Laili, "It's a little boy, Laili. You did good."

"This was not how I envisioned my Christmas Day," Wilhelm complained later that evening.

"Babies don't care what holiday it is," Susanna said firmly. "They come when they want."

Susanna had taken Laili and her baby boy with her back to the Camden household for a few weeks, until she was sure that Laili could cope on her own. 

Curiosity finally killed the cat later, as the three teens were sitting in front of the fireplace, the baby sleeping in a bassinet nearby. Daniela blurted out "So what's his name?"

Laili looked thoughtful. "I'm not sure, to tell you the truth. Do you have any ideas?" The two girls had become sort of acquaintance-type friends. They weren't tight, but they still considered each other confidants.

"I dunno." Daniela shrugged. "Maybe Ky—nah. Kyle Reimer's a drunk. Not a good name."

"No," Laili interrupted. "Maybe not Ky_le but Kai has a sort of nice ring to it."_

"She's got a point there," Dak input. "But what about a middle name?"

"Well," Laili hesitated. "In my family, it's customary to give a child the middle name of his father, both grandfathers and another family member, but I'm not too taken with that idea."

"So skip the pops and take somebody who doesn't upset you." Daniela suggested. "Like, I dunno, brother?"

"I don't have a brother," Laili admitted. "I do have a cousin though. He was the one who got me out here."

"Julien?" Dak asked.

"Yes, do you know him?"

"Yeah, he was my cabinmate every year I went to camp. Called me about a month back, asking me if there was any way to house a cousin of his. Obviously, I agreed." Dak flashed his signature grin.

"That still leaves one more name, though." Laili spoke up.

"David." Daniela blurted out. When both Dak and Laili looked at her, she mumbled, "Well, I dunno, thought it sounded cool."

"Try it out," Dak offered to Laili, who looked thoughtful.

"Kai Julien David Hiwatari."

"Mouthful," Dak commented.

"Maybe switching them around," Daniela suggested.

"Kai David Julien Hiwatari."

"Still a mouthful."

"I dunno, though, wasn't Julien a pyromaniac?" Daniela asked. Both Dak and Laili nodded. "So maybe cut out Julien."

"Kai David Hiwatari." Laili repeated.

"I like it,"

"That's 'cause you're in it."

"Maybe."

"Definitely. Hey, Laili, just out of curiosity, what would it have been if you'd followed your family's custom?"

Laili smiled wryly. "Kai Sebastien Maximilian Voltaire Julien Hiwatari."

"Ouch."

"Definitely ouch."

"I still say I like Kai David." Dak said decisively.

"Me too," Daniela agreed.

"I agree." Laili sighed.

"But why not two middle names any way, the second just a little name?" Daniela suggested.

"Like what?" Dak asked, exasperated.

"Like… Noel."

"For his birthday," Laili noted. "Very clever. Kai David Noel Hiwatari."

"I like it," Dak offered.

"So that's it." Laili said before Daniela could change her mind and reached for the white cover notebook that passed as her baby book. Picking up the light blue marker lying nearby, she wrote, in her careful script,

**_KAI DAVID NOEL HIWATARI_**

**_DECEMBER 25, 1988_**

****

****

**If I could reach higher,**

**Just for one moment, touch the sky,**

**From that one moment in my life,**

**I'm gonna be stronger,  
Know that I've tried my very best,**

**I'd put my spirit to the test,**

**If I could reach…**


	2. 2003

Far From Here

A/N: So? Ready for the next installment in the saga of Laili and Kai Hiwatari? *starts laughing hysterically* Sorry, just saw the last episode again. Did you ever think you'd hear Kai say "Sweet!"???????????????? ^-^

DISCLAIMER: I own only Laili, Dak, Daniela, Susanna, Wilhelm, and all of Dawnfaith.

**_CHAPTER 2: 2003_**

            15-year-old Kai Hiwatari had fallen behind on the annual updating of team information charts, so on the five-hour bus ride to Sunsrest Station, that's what he wound up doing. There was a Beyblade tournament taking place in Sunsrest that the Bladebreakers were bound to compete in, to guard their titles and all. However, Sunsrest was a small place, with nowhere near enough space to house all the teams. This was why the Bladebreakers had been relegated to Dawnfaith, a even tinier village about an hour out of Sunsrest.

            Kai grumbled incoherently as he glared at the forms. Finally, he set his fingers on the keyboard of his laptop and began filling it in.

**Team Name:** Bladebreakers****

**Country of Origin:** Japan/China****

**Team Sponsor:** Stanley Dickenson, BBA Japan

**Team Captain:** Kai Hiwatari****

****

**TEAM MEMBERS******

**Name:** GRANGER, Tyson Dallas****

**Legal Name:** GRANGER, Tyson Dallas****

**Birthdate:** April 17, 1990****

**Birthplace:** Tokyo, Japan****

**Parents:** Gregory and Therese Granger****

**Guardian (if different from above):** N/A****

**Address:** 1857 Tama Blvd., Tokyo, Japan****

**Phone:** 256-8346****

**Bitbeast:** Dragoon****

**Name:** TATE, Max Cameron, Jr.****

**Legal Name:** TATE, Maxwell Cameron, Jr.****

**Birthdate:** July 6, 1990

**Birthplace:** Yokohama, Japan****

**Parents:** Maxwell and Judy Tate****

**Guardian (if different from above):** N/A****

**Address:** 1694-01 Blanche Ave., Tokyo, Japan****

**Phone:** 235-0632****

**Bitbeast:** Draciel

            "I hate those things, don't you?" 13-year-old Max asked brightly, leaning over to watch Kai. "I mean, like nothing ever changes, so why bother?"

            "Because we'll get kicked out if we don't." Kai responded icily and started typing again.

**Name:** DION, Kenny Matthew William Lucas****

**Legal Name: **DION, Kenneth Matthew William Lucas****

**Birthdate:** July 28, 1990****

**Birthplace:** Tokyo, Japan****

**Parents:** Eric and Alice Dion****

**Guardian (if different from above):** N/A****

**Address:** 19 Woodranasta St.****

**Phone:** 235-2947****

**Bitbeast:** Dizzara/Dizzi

**Name:** KON, Rei Chen****

**Legal Name:** KON, Rei Chen****

**Birthdate:** December 31, 1988****

**Birthplace:** Nakoemi, China****

**Parents:** Ira and Lien Kon****

**Guardian (if different from above):** Lian Kon (sister)****

**Address:** 1 Waif Way, Nakoemi, China****

**Phone:** (913) 777-0265****

**Bitbeast:** Driger

Finally, there was only one left. This one, Kai always hated doing: his own. You wouldn't think it would be that difficult, doing your own information chart, but Kai… technically, he wasn't supposed to remember half of it, but this was one Hiwatari who had taken after his mother: exceptionally good memory.

            Sighing, he started to write again.

**Name:** HIWATARI, Kai Sebastien Maximilian Voltaire Julien****

**Legal Name:** HIWATARI, Kai Sebastien Maximilian Voltaire Julien****

**Birthdate:** December 25, 1988****

**Birthplace:** Dawnfaith, Japan****

**Parents:** Sebastien and Annabelle Hiwatari****

**Guardian (if different from above):** Voltaire Hiwatari (grandfather)****

**Address:** 19365 Harling Blvd., Tokyo, Japan****

**Phone:** 111-9966****

**Bitbeast:** Dranzer

            "Harling Avenue?" 15-year-old Rei commented from beside Kai. Kai's head snapped up and he whipped around to glare at his teammate, the second-in-command of the Bladebreakers. "Bit far from the training stadium, isn't it?"

            "What are you doing reading over my shoulder, any way?" Kai demanded hotly, clicking the **Send button, thus making the forms disappear before Rei could read any more. "This is confidential info."**

            "So why do you know all of it?" Rei asked. "Even mine, and that's saying something."

            "I'm team captain," Kai answered easily. "It's my job to know this."

            "Yeah, well I'm second-in-command, so I should know it too." Rei responded, grinning.

            "I'm third-in-command!" Max and Tyson echoed as one. "I should know it too!"

"I'm… a part of this team," Chief claimed. "We should all just know."

"Ssshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!" Random People On The Bus hissed, glaring at the five boys congregated in the back.

"So-o-rry!" Tyson said indignantly. He shut up when the slightly annoying sound of Kai's index fingertip tapping on the plastic met his ears. Maybe it wasn't so smart to aggravate Kai now… he was already on edge for some unknown reason. "Soo… who's supposed to be meeting us at the station again?"

"I can't remember," Chief and Rei admitted.

"I never knew in the first place," Max announced.

Kai said, "I believe it was supposed to be David and Laili Camden." His heart gave a painful wrench at the mention. But his teammates knew nothing about his family aside from his grandfather, and Kai intended to keep it that way. It was no use longing for what you couldn't have.

"We will be arriving at Sunsrest Station in precisely five minutes. Please pack away all your belongings and prepare for arrival." The cheerful stewardess chirped over the intercom.

Kai closed the laptop silently and packed it away. This was his own, amazingly enough, because Chief got tired of him borrowing Dizzi all the time and snapped at him to go buy his own. Which he did.

The five minutes were a blur and then before the knew it, they had stepped off the bus, collected their baggage and were waiting for the arrival of their hosts.

"It's coooooooooooooooold!!!!" Tyson whined, shivering, even though his down jacket was zipped.

"Didn't I tell you it's cold in December down in this end of Japan?" Kai asked, flipping his hood up. "If you disregarded my instructions and wore shorts, that's not my problem."

Max yelped as a sudden wind swept past the group. "But I'm dressed warm and I'M freezing my sweet little butt off! Even on the bus!"

"Not my problem. I'M not cold." Kai repeated, leaning back against the stone pillar.

"Yeah, well, excuse those of us who didn't spend nine years in Russia." Rei snapped through chattering teeth, while clutching his coat tighter around himself.

"Besides, would you rather have been on the train?" Kai asked logically, ignoring Rei's sarcastic comment. "The train's way too hot all year. At least the bus had slight heat control."

"Are you the Bladebreakers?" A voice called. "Sorry I'm late, it took a while to get through the roads." A redheaded man with blue eyes drove up, in a snow-covered van. Getting out of the van, he added, "If you want to throw your stuff in the trunk and climb in, we can get back probably by dinnertime."

"Dinner!" Tyson roared. Rei rolled his eyes as Tyson and Max dashed towards the van, trying to claim shotgun.

"I'm older!" Tyson protested.

"I'm cuter!" Max countered.

"I'm the oldest of us all and team captain, so I get the passenger seat." Kai finally yelled over Tyson and Max.

"No fair, Kai!" Tyson and Max whined in unison

Their host smiled, an engaging sort of grin. "So you guys mind introducing yourselves? We got names, but no faces. I'm David, but call me Dak. Laili stayed at home. Not feeling so well today."

"I'm Tyson!" Tyson called, over Max.

"Max!" Max yelped.

"Kenny," Chief said.

"Rei," Rei answered.

There was a slight pause between Rei and Kai, who finally responded, "Kai."

Dak looked at Kai, an undistinguished emotion in his eyes.

"Um, excuse me, Dak, sir?" Max asked timidly. "Ca—can we get in? Only I'm kinda cold, and…"

"Oh sure." Dak responded, opening the door.

On the way back, Dak commented to the five, "Gave everybody quite a shock when we received the list of kids we were supposed to be hosting, just to have the name Kai jump out at us. You see, my son was named Kai as well, and he and his friend just disappeared about ten years ago. I guess you could say the wound never really healed."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: There's chappie two for ya! Review, please!!


	3. Cold Cases

Far From Here

A/N: Yo, yo, yo!!! I'm back, I'm back!!! Get down, get down!!! Heh, heh, heh!!! Crazy, crazy, craaaaaaazy!!! ^-^*

DISCLAIMER: I own only Dawnfaith's inhabitants

**_CHAPTER 3: COLD CASES_**

            That night, Rei, Tyson, Max and Chief were all huddled over Dizzi, watching the pre-tournament ceremonies at Sunsrest on cyber-TV.

            "No TV!" Tyson had groaned. "How can these people live???"

            "Very easily, apparently," Kai had answered curtly and gone out, probably for some last-minute training.

            Channel flipping had done nothing, so finally their channel had gotten stuck on a program on missing children, called Cold Cases: Unsolved Child Abductions.

            _"And now, a file that has been in our records for nearly a decade," _the announcer intoned, then a home video clip started playing.

            There was two dark-haired boys, mostly likely about four or five years old, who appeared to be having fun as they kicked a ball around in a yard. In the bottom right-hand corner of the screen, the numbers 08-93 kept a steady spot. After a minute or so, the two boys waved goodbye to the person holding the camera and ran off down the gravel road. 

The video fizzled out to show the announcer again, with his ever-solemn face, saying, _"This was taken in August 1993. In the tiny settlement of Dawnfaith, just outside of Sunsrest, Japan, this scene was not unusual in many ways. In fact, this was a regular occurrence. Nobody ever thought that anything would happen to these two boys: everybody knew everybody in Dawnfaith. But then one day, the unthinkable happened._

Two couples, sitting on a porch. The men were talking, the women seemed in shock. The text box at the bottom read, **Glen and Isobel Yvan, David and Laili Camden; parents of missing boys Alexei Yvan (4) and Kai Camden (4).**

The announcer's voice cut in again. _"When best friends Alexei Yvan and Kai Camden left Alexei's house to play at Kai's house, a two-minute walk away, for a while, their parents hadn't worried. They had done the trek millions of times, with nothing happening. But this time, something did happen. The two boys never reached the Camden property; in fact, as far all police investigations pointed, they never made to the road. Not a single soul recalled seeing the two boys anywhere in Dawnfaith. They had seemingly disappeared into thin air."_

Rei looked at the screen in interest. So this was the boy Dak had told them about.

_"Kai's mother Laili offered police surprising information that might have aided in the discovery of the boys. When she first moved to Dawnfaith five years before, just a few weeks before her son's birth, she had left behind in Tokyo her child's biological father and his family, and her father. Threatening letters had been arriving at the Camden household for a few weeks before the disappearance, warning that 'the boy will drop off the face of the Earth and you will never see him again'. However, attempts to locate the child's biological father and both grandfathers have failed._

_"With the help of the nearby police department, we have been able to use new technology to digitally age pictures of the two boys to their current age of 15. If there has been any sight or any information at all on these two boys, please call 1-800-FIND-ME. The number again, 1-800-FIND-ME. That's 1-800-2352-53."_

Onto the screen came the computerized pictures, along with the stats of both boys.

**_YVAN, ALEXEI EMLYN_** (The boy actually, by the computerized image, looked scarily like Rei, except for the eyes.)**__**

**_POSSIBLE ALIAS: ?_******

**_DATE OF BIRTH:_**** December 31, 1988 ('Hey, that's my birthday!' Rei thought, surprised.)****__**

**_DATE OF DISAPPEARANCE:_**** August 11, 1993__**

**_PLACE LAST SEEN BEFORE DISAPPEARANCE:_**** Dawnfaith, Japan**

**_PLACE LAST SUSPECTED TO BE SEEN ON INFORMATION:_**** Serov, Russia (2001)__**

**_HAIR:_**** Black__**

**_EYES:_**** Gold-brown__**

**_DISTINGUISHING FEATURES:_**** None**

**_CAMDEN, KAI DAVID NOEL_** (The boy, besides the eyes, maybe, and the first name, looked not that much like Kai.)**__**

**_POSSIBLE ALIAS:_**** Kai Hiwatari__**

**_DATE OF BIRTH:_**** December 25, 1988__**

**_DATE OF DISAPPEARANCE:_**** August 11, 1993__**

**_PLACE LAST SEEN BEFORE DISAPPEARANCE:_**** Dawnfaith, Japan__**

**_PLACE LAST SUSPECTED TO BE SEEN ON INFORMATION:_**** Las Vegas, Nevada, USA (2002)__**

**_HAIR:_**** Black with hint of navy-blue__**

**_EYES:_**** Crimson__**

**_DISTINGUISHING FEATURES:_**** None**

****These two boys are suspected to be in the company of****

**_HIWATARI, SEBASTIEN VOLTAIRE ANDRES TOSHIHIRO MAXIMILIAN_**

**_OR_**

**_HIWATARI, MAXIMILIAN ANDRES TOSHIHIRO PIERRE VOLTAIRE _**

**_OR_**

**_HIWATARI, VOLTAIRE ANDRES TOSHIHIRO PIERRE DAMIAN_**

**__**

*****ANY INFORMATION, PLEASE CALL 1-800-FIND-ME*****

_            "Between October 1993 and December 2001, there was over 100 tips on these two spotted together from various places around Europe, mostly on Russian soil and during Beyblade tournaments. During 2002, there were more tips from Beyblade fans around the globe who claim to have seen a Kai Hiwatari at many tournaments with a Japanese team. Police are currently trying to locate the team and searching through team databases to follow up on these many accounts."_

            "Dude…" Tyson breathed finally, as the credits rolled past. "Our team captain is a fugitive from the law."

            "No," Rei corrected. "He's a kidnapped kid from here."


	4. Master Files of Biovolt Training Abbey ...

Far From Here

A/N: In answer to your question, Pyscho_chik, about the hair thing, my logical brain insists that no person can have hair like Kai's that is naturally coloured. My decision is that the slate part is bleached. Oh! And if anybody recalls the names of Tala and Bryan's bitbeasts, please tell me! PLEEEEEEEEEEASE! It's crucial, man! I'm improvising in this chapter!

DISCLAIMER: I own only Dawnfaith. Yadayadayada, you all know this perfectly well.

**_CHAPTER 4: MASTER FILES OF BIOVOLT TRAINING ABBEY    1993_**

            Rei, Tyson, Max and Chief stared at each other in surprised shock; now playing on the cyber-TV channel was some sort of small children's show, with happy dancing singing pink rhinos with green polka dots. Dizzi, disgusted, flicked the cyber-TV off, reverting back to the abandoned Beybattle analyzing screen.

            _Guys, think this through clearly._ Dizzi ordered. _What are the chances that it's our Kai?_

            "What are the chances of there being two Kai Hiwataris in this world?" Chief snapped back hoarsely.

            _All right, got me there._ Dizzi groused. _Well, I don't really feel like getting my hard drive stuck in this mess._

            "Neither do I," Rei admitted.

_            However, if people wanted to find out more information, I can hack into the abbey's old files._ Dizzi was quick to add.

"Yeah!" Tyson and Max enthused; the promise of an adventure that would definitely end in a sticky situation was more than enough to capture them.

            "All right," both Rei and Chief heaved great sighs.

            _Hang onto your seats, boys, we're taking off!_ Dizzi announced cheerfully as the screen flickered and then appeared on a webpage screeching

**MASTER FILES OF BIOVOLT TRAINING ABBEY**

****

****

****

****

****

**HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL**

**HACKERS WILL BE PROSECUTED TO FULL EXTENT OF THE GLOBAL LAW**

**YOU WILL NOT CRACK THROUGH THIS**

**GIVE IT UP**

**NOW**

            "Well, they've got nothing to hide," Rei snorted sarcastically.

            "What d'you suppose the password is?" Tyson asked.

            Meanwhile, Chief was busy typing in possible passwords as fast as his stubby fingers would allow. **Biovolt. Boris. Voltaire. Abbey. Training. Beyblade. World Domination (hey, it was worth a shot!)**. Demolition Boys.****

            "Try 'password'." Max suggested. Chief cocked an eyebrow, but typed in **Password** and got quite a shock when the screen changed to reveal several tabs and links.

            "You're a _genius!" Rei exclaimed, ruffling Max's hair affectionately._

            "So, what do we try first?" Chief asked, looking in dismay at the tabs and links, which must've numbered in the hundreds, at least.

            "Maybe… this one," Max suggested, pointing to a random button. The button read **Stats 1993. "That's the year the two boys disappeared, wasn't it?"**

            "Yeah," Rei responded, knocking Chief's hands off the keyboard and clicking the tab. It pulled up a screen with various incomprehensible charts and graphs and looooooooooong lists.

****

**_NUMBER OF FLEETERS (as of December 31): _****6250**

**_NUMBER OF NEW RECRUITS (as of December 31): _****50**

**_NUMBER OF DISPOSALS (as of December 31): _****390**

**_NUMBER OF UNACCOUNTED, PRESUMED ESCAPED (as of December 31): 10_******

**_NUMBER OF TOURNAMENTS AND COMPETITIONS PARTICIPATED IN: _****32**

**_NUMBER OF TOURNAMENTS AND COMPETITIONS WON: _****30**

**_NUMBER OF BITBEASTS ISSUED (as of December 31): _****15**

****

**_BLOCKS/ROOMS DISPOSED OF ON ACCOUNT OF LOST TOURNAMENTS: _****B1 R1, B13 R11**

**_BLOCKS/ROOMS OF DISTINCTION: _****B1 R3, B13 R13, B48 R23**

**_FLEETERS OF DISTINCTION:_**** R13 B13 F1, B13 R13 F2, B13 R13 F3, B13 R13 F4**

**_AGE VARIANTS OF TOTAL GROUPS (as of December 31): 5 - 19_**

****

            "Oh, come on, this is useless junk!" Tyson finally growled, after another block of such statistics. "This is just numbers and random letters!"

            "No, wait," Chief said, holding up a hand. "They keep mentioning blocks, rooms and fleeters. And the letter B, R and F and numbers keep reappearing. What if it all represents codes or something?"

            "**Block, **R**oom, ****Fleeter." Rei said suddenly. "And the numbers attached. B**13 **R****13 F****1. Block 13, Room 13, Fleeter 1. An identity number. Now if we could get names to attach…"**

            "Files 1993!" Chief, who had reverted to the home screen of tabs and links. He hastily clicked it and started scanning. "What was the numbers that keep coming up most often, Rei?"

            "B13 R13." Rei responded. Chief found the tab bearing B13 R13 and tapped.

**_B13 R13_******

**_TOTAL NUMBER OF TOURNAMENTS AND COMPETITIONS PARTICIPATED IN:_**** 16__**

**_TOTAL NUMBER OF TOURNAMENTS AND COMPETITIONS WON:_**** 16**

**_GENERAL LINE-UP:_**** B13 R13 F1, B13 R13 F3, B13 R13 F4 **

**_GENERAL BACK-UP:_**** B13 R13 F2, B13 R13 F5**

**_OCCUPANTS (5)_**

**_IDENTITY NUMBER:_**** B13 R13 F1__**

**_NAME:_**** Nicholae, Tala__**

**_ALIAS GIVEN:_**** n/a__**

**_ALTERATIONS MADE:_**** n/a__**

**_BIRTHDATE:_**** September 1, 1988__**

**_BITBEAST:_**** not issued yet, currently using Gerego__**

**_PRESENT STATUS:_**** accounted for, competing**

**_IDENTITY NUMBER:_**** B13 R13 F2__**

**_NAME:_**** Bennett, Benjamin__**

**_ALIAS GIVEN:_**** Blair, Bryan__**

**_ALTERATIONS MADE:_**** modified memory__**

**_BIRTHDATE:_**** June 18, 1988__**

**_BITBEAST:_**** not issued yet, currently using Desimir__**

**_PRESENT STATUS:_**** accounted for, competing**

**_IDENTITY NUMBER:_**** B13 R13 F3__**

**_NAME:_**** Yvan, Alexei__**

**_ALIAS GIVEN:_**** Tchaikov, Alexei__**

**_ALTERATIONS MADE:_**** modified memory, spirit binding__**

**_BIRTHDATE:_**** December 31, 1988__**

**_BITBEAST:_**** issued, Lydon__**

**_PRESENT STATUS:_**** accounted for, competing**

**_IDENTITY NUMBER:_**** B13 R13 F4__**

**_NAME:_**** Camden, Kai__**

**_ALIAS GIVEN:_**** Hiwatari, Kai__**

**_ALTERATIONS MADE:_**** memory erasage, memory implantation, branding, spirit binding__**

**_BIRTHDATE:_**** December 25, 1988__**

**_BITBEAST:_**** issued, Dranzer__**

**_PRESENT STATUS:_**** accounted for, competing**

**_IDENTITY NUMBER:_**** B13 R13 F5__**

**_NAME:_**** Perez, Mateo__**

**_ALIAS GIVEN: _****n/a__**

**_ALTERATIONS MADE:_**** n/a__**

**_BIRTHDATE:_**** February 3, 1984__**

**_BITBEAST:_**** issued, Bomero__**

**_PRESENT STATUS:_**** unaccounted for as of December 25**

            "Holy flying cows!" Max whistled. "There's enough incriminating info in that to get the whole lot of them in prison."

            "We can't be the first people to have hacked in." Chief shook his head. "Too simple a password."

            "You're right," a harsh voice came from behind them.


	5. Traitor

Far From Here

A/N: Hi-o, peepsole! Yes, I'm still here! *grin* Hahahahahahahahaha *cough* hahahahahahahaha *sneeze* hahahahahahahahahahahaha *chokes, falls to the ground* ha!

DISCLAIMER: I don't own… jeez, people, you know whom I own and do not own. COMMON SENSE, GUYS!

**_CHAPTER 5: TRAITOR_**

            "Yah!" Rei jumped and tumbled off the arm of the chair he had been perched on. "Who're you?!"

            "I would be Julien Hiwatari." The dark-brown haired man said, an undecided emotion playing on the edge of his rugged features. Ice blue eyes didn't break gazes with catlike golden eyes, and one hand compulsively flicked a lighter on and off constantly. "Sorry, need more info?"

            "Uh, yeah." Tyson answered.

            "Let me retry this," Julien sighed. "Detective Julien Hiwatari, Head of World Government Special Investigations Unit. Now, as I was saying, you aren't the first to crack into Boris' master files. However, that's not important. Nobody believes what they read on the Net any way. I was looking for Kai."

            "Not here," Max answered. "Probably out back."

            Julien swore in an impressive array of languages and tore out the door. "Kai, you _baka, you _perra_, you __putin… you…" he trailed off as he caught sight of a dark-haired teen with bleached hair, slipping in among the trees. "Not so fast, 007. I put you on house arrest." He caught the tail end of Kai's scarf and hauled him back out. Struggling, Kai hissed something in Russian, then French, then Spanish, then English, then Chinese, then Japanese and after that, Chief didn't recognize any other languages._

            "Stop it, you idiot!" Julien roared. "If you would let me talk for one freaking second…"

            "Oh, yeah?" Kai challenged, lapsing back into Japanese. "So you can say what? That I'm supposed to sit around like some bloody milksop and wait for them to come and get me? I don't think so!"

            "Well, if you intend for all of your friends there to leave this place in one piece and alive, you'll shut up and listen." Julien snapped. "How much do you want to wager that they kill Alexei when they capture him?"

            These words had the intended effect. Immediately, Kai stopped struggling and allowed himself to be dragged back into the cabin. He still protested, mind you. "What are the chances, you idiot? You don't think they're smart enough to realize if they hadn't found him by now, he's probably dead?"

            "They still haven't caught that runaway roommate of yours," Julien patiently reminded him.

            "Mateo crossed the Russian border," Kai snarled. "They don't have any more legal power over him. Saw him at a competition just a month ago."

            "They're still after you," Julien tried again.

            "Yeah, well, they can't legally take me back because I'm on a different team." Kai snapped. "See? I got it all figured out without your help."

            "Do you _really think legalities and laws and rules matter to them, Kai?" Julien growled. "Honestly, how naïve can you get?"_

            "I am NOT naïve!" Kai snapped, fire crackling in his crimson eyes. "After all the Shakespearean plot you call my childhood, you really think I am capable of being naïve?"

            The other four Bladebreakers had been deathly silent during all this. Hoping to catch a snatch of what Kai's early years were like, they didn't move a muscle until Kai finally snarled, "Guys, go warm up." Rei didn't bother getting up when the younger three scampered out, instead sliding into the vacated chair. "Rei…" the cold, I-am-boss voice had gone, now it was just a pitiful plead.

            Just then, the door swung open again and two adults entered in. One was Dak, looking grim and pale; the other was a woman about Dak's age, she must've been Laili.

            "Julien!" Laili nearly shouted.

            "How'd you know I was here?" Julien asked, turning around to face them.

            "The government car sitting outside," Dak answered.

            "Remind me to get a less conspicuous car next time." Julien muttered. "Any way. Yes, I am here. Obviously."

            "Yeah, and I'm out of here!" Kai snapped, even as he zipped out.

            Kai ran, and he didn't stop running until he was a good distance ahead. He knew his feet would leave tracks, so he had to find out a way to distract them.

            "Thought you'd never leave, traitor."


	6. Losing Grip

Far From Here

A/N: *singing* Yayness! Beyblade won! Sorry, YTV had a poll type thing on whether to have the voice actors from either Transformers Armada, Beyblade or Hamtaro. BEYBLADE WON!!! They had the voice actors for Kenny, Kai and Max there. DUDE! Kai's voice actor dude was HOT! David something, I think. 18, too! *starts dancing* Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai… FONDUE! ^-^ YAYNESS! New season-ness!

DISCLAIMER: I own only… jeez, why am I still saying this? I've been telling you for five chapters now! Sheesh…

**_CHAPTER 6: LOSING GRIP_**

            "Thought you'd never leave, traitor."

            Kai whipped around. "Alec!"

            There, standing in front of him, was someone who, to the unknowing eye, would appear to be Rei. But Kai knew better. This particular black-haired, golden-eyed Blader was pretty ticked off, something Rei never was. He had grown up with Alexei Yvan. He tolerated Rei Kon for a year, until Mr. Dickenson announced that the agreement papers they had signed the year before were non-retractable. Meaning Kai had been duped a good one and was now stuck with this juvenile morons for a loooooong time.

            "You're a traitor, you know that, right?" Alec snapped.

            "Never said otherwise," Kai snapped right back. "Now can we get the heck out of here before they catch us?"

            "Thought you'd never ask." Alec responded and jumped onto the sturdy branch of a nearby tree. "Get up, traitor."

            "Kai!" Julien yelled uselessly as he ran a dismayed hand through his hair. "You idiot! I'm going to KILL you when I find you!" Grumbling incoherently, he finally muttered, "What'd I ever do to deserve a nephew like him… Pam, we have a KROA. Headed north-northeast about five minutes ago." He spoke into his walkie-talkie. An irritated female voice responded, "Gotcha, Julien. I'll head after him. And next time, for Heaven's sake bug him."

            "I'll think it over, Pam," Julien dutifully responded and looked up at Rei, Dak and Laili, who were looking pretty confused.

            "What's KROA?" Rei finally asked, breaking the awkward silence.

            "**Kai's **R**un ****Off ****Again." Julien responded, a ghost of a smile appearing. "My field investigator is getting tired of tracking him down. In case you couldn't tell."**

            "Julien," Laili finally spoke up. "Tell me the truth. Was that my son?"

            Julien hesitated only for a moment before responding, "Yes."

            It was like the crack that caused the dam to explode. Both Dak and Laili started yelling at Julien at once, until finally he hollered, "SHUT IT FOR A SECOND AND I'LL EXPLAIN!!"

            Abashed, Dak and Laili's jeremiad subsided and Julien sighed.

            "Your initial suspicion was right, Laili. Father and Sebastien did kidnap them." He paused only for a moment before continuing.

            "Originally, their intention was just to take Kai for a couple of weeks or a month or something, just to try and prove that they still have power over you, but, and I'm not sure on how this happened, but the plan got changed. I'm still clueless as to why they took Alexei, but my best guess is as good as yours.

            "After they had captured the two, Uncle Maximilian pointed out that they were all too obvious as targets. So Sebastien had this crazy idea that they could hide the boys away in Balkoff Abbey, a Beyblade training abbey in Russia. This one was run by Boris Balkoff, an acquaintance of Father's, I'm sure you've met him, Rei."

            Rei shuddered. "Don't remind me."

            Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of jumping from tree to tree, they found a cave to stop over in for the night. Unlike Kai, Alec had come prepared for a night outside. Now he tossed a fleece blanket over to Kai, who caught it easily and rubbed his arms.

            "So, _traitor," Alec said grumpily, "Mind explaining why you abandoned me? Why you abandoned _us_? And joined up with a team of kids, no less."_

            "Listen, it wasn't _my idea to do that!" Kai snapped. "Head of the BBA forced me into it."_

            "Teams created by the BBA only last a year." Alec pointed out, poking the slowly growing fire with a stick.

            "Not this one," Kai griped. "They pulled a fast one on me. Somewhere in there was the hidden fact that the agreement papers were non-retractable."

            Alec turned to face his old friend,  a lost look in his eye. "So you're stuck?"

            "Oh, you bet I am." Kai grumbled. "And I don't like it one little bit."

            _"Listen, kid, if that cherished Dak of yours even cared what happened to you, he wouldn't be ignoring your absence. Look," Sebastien pushed a key and on the screen appeared a video of the Camden cabin, where Dak was locking the door to Kai's bedroom and smiling as Laili held up a frilled baby dress, most likely for the baby sister Kai was supposed to be getting in February._

_            "Dak!" Kai screamed, trying to reach past the screen. "Mommy! Come get me!"_

_            Sebastien snapped the picture from the screen and smacked the small boy across the face. "Shut it, you b******! Don't you hear me? They Don't Care!"_

_            "No!" Kai continued to scream, struggling even as the two teenage boys in the shadows emerged and restrained him to a chair. "Dak! Mommy! Dak! Mommy!"_

            Breathing hard, Kai's eyes flew open and he lay there, staring at the stone ceiling.

            Where had _that come from? Sighing, Kai rolled over and closed his eyes again, falling back into his uneasy slumber.___

_            Sebastien released him and prompted, "So? Do they care about you?"_

_            "No, sir," Kai replied monotonously, eyes slightly unfocused._

_            "Who cares about you?"_

_            "Nobody, sir."_

_            "Are you going to cause Sir any difficulties?"_

_            "No, sir." _

_            "Good boy. Now go back to your dormitory."_

_            "Yes, sir."_

            "Hey, Kai," Alec hissed. "Wakey wakey." He poked Kai in the side, which then caused him to bolt right up and sock Alec. 

"Hey!" Alec whined, rubbing his hit cheek. "You pack quite a punch now."

"Sorry, Alec." Kai groaned as he sat up, clutching at his temples. "I'm a little on edge. Julien's probably sent Pam after me by now."

"Yes he did," a _definitely irritated female voice announced from the cave's opening._

"Julien?" Pam's voice came from over the walkie-talkie. "I have both of them in custody now. Want me to bring 'em in?"

"Sure, thanks, Pam." Julien said sleepily.

"Running after my boss' delinquent runaway nephew was _not_ part of the job description." Pam responded grouchily and signed out.

Stretching, Julien got up and tried not to step on any Beybladers during the attempt. Rather than fight over who got the master bedroom (the other room was locked), all four boys had just sprawled out with pillows and blankets they had brought from home on the floor.

Just as he was opening the door, an exceptionally cold blast of air hit him. Unfortunately, he didn't close the door fast enough and all four boys were awake and clamoring for information.

"Did you find him?" seemed to be the general question.

Julien sighed. "Yes, I did. Now, if you don't mind, I have to go inform Dak and Laili. And I'm sure Glen and Isobel will want to know as well."

Just as they all left the cabin, a government car pulled up and an irate woman of Hispanic origin emerged, followed by two arguing teen boys.

Kai would've laughed when Rei and Alec set eyes on each other, yelling about doppelgangers, if the situation hadn't been so serious and his head hadn't felt like it was going to explode. Grumbling curses upon Biovolt and all members of his family, he took a seat on the armchair in the living room of the cabin, one hand gripping his head strenuously.

"Kai?" Alec asked, finally tearing his eyes away from Rei. "What's wr— oh, no. Not now."

Kai didn't answer, because all of his strength was now being used to keep from screaming in pain.

"Kai?" Rei asked tentatively. "You all right?"

"Kai?" Tyson input, watching his captain with concern. "Hey, buddy, you okay?"

The door slammed open and the adults entered. Julien immediately said, "What's going on?"

"We don't know," the Bladebreakers said in unison. Alec looked up and almost immediately, Julien's eyes betrayed an understanding. Striding over, he caught his nephew roughly by the arm. "Come on, Kai."

Kai mumbled something incoherent and fought against the iron grip.

"Honestly, Kai, stop it!" Julien snapped. Kai glowered at him a moment longer before wrenching his arm out of Julien's grip.

"I don't need it," Kai hissed. "What do you figure I am, a kid?"

"Compared to me, you are," Julien responded bluntly. "And don't start giving me the 'nerves-of-steel' thing. I trust you have your laptop with you? Because I would hate to prolong this for a couple of days while we attempt to download the program onto _his," he gestured towards Chief, who was looking utterly perplexed, "provided that it doesn't explode first."_

Kai sneered at him for a second before producing the computer and reseating himself on the couch, with the signature look of 'I could be in the middle of my painful death and I would never admit it' look. You know, the stone mask?

"Good boy," Julien said and opened the computer. "A couple of seconds. Pam, go get the bag."


	7. Day Two of the Tournament

Far From Here

A/N: Wow! People actually like my stories! *sniffle* 20 reviews!!! *looks at Jen's 68 reviews for TWO CHAPTERS and Celina's 138 reviews and the 52 reviews for… some other story of Laura's* WAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Depressed!!!!

DISCLAIMER: see chapters 1-6. I refuse to do this anymore. You have been officially informed that I do not own Beyblade.

**_CHAPTER 7: DAY TWO OF THE TOURNAMENT_**

            Alec could only watch miserably as Julien accepted the black bag Pam held out. Somehow, he had a feeling Julien wouldn't listen if he protested, and besides, nine years in Balkoff Abbey had taught him never to speak up while this was going on.

            "Wh-wh-what are you doing?" Chief squeaked out, eyes wide and round as Julien opened the bag to haul out what seemed like a zillion long wires in a myriad of colours. "Wh-wh-what are those for?"

            "I'd like to know that too," Dak agreed, stepping forward dangerously. Laili, pale with shock, was hanging onto Isobel Yvan's arm.

            "This'll take a while," Julien said vaguely. "I'll explain when we're through. It might be better if you all leave." Slowly, reluctantly, the adults left.

            "I stay." Alec spoke up. "I know how to deal with the side effects."

            "Side effects?" the room chorused in unison, even Julien, who looked up in surprise from where he was busy attaching various wires to plug-ins and electrodes. Kai was still looking scarily… scary, glaring at Alec.

            "Guys, get out," he spoke up, directing his gaze at his teammates, who looked reluctant. "_Now."_

            "Yessir!" Max finally yelped and tore out of there, closely followed by Chief and Tyson. You just didn't mess with Kai when he used that tone of voice.

            "No." Rei said quietly. "I'm staying."

            "Rei, get out." Kai repeated. "If you make me get up and forcibly remove you…"

            "I'd like to see you try, in your current state," Rei responded, crossing his arms and seating himself on the armchair across the room.

            "Kai, we're ready to start attaching." Julien interrupted, and the teen obeyed by stretching out on the couch and remaining perfectly still as Julien attached the many, many, many, many, many electrodes at various points around Kai's head: his forehead, his temples, underneath his hair, along his scalp.

            "Ready, Kai?" Julien asked, after the whole procedure was finished. Carefully, taking care not to rip any electrodes out, Kai nodded.

            Rei and Alec, watching over Julien's shoulders as he clicked **Commence**, looked back up at Kai as he jumped a bit, then remained motionless.

            "What's going on?" Rei asked, eyes never leaving the sight of his ice-cold and diamond-strong captain look completely helpless and vulnerable. "How long does this last?"

            "It's memory re-modification and re-erasage and re-implantation," Alec answered quietly. "What program letter is it, Julien?"

            "Uh, S, why?"

            "All right, then it's rebinding as well." Alec added.

            "Explanation?" Rei asked hopefully.

            Alec sighed. "When we first arrived at Balkoff Abbey, we, ah, weren't the most compliant of children. Too many good memories of our homes outside of the abbey. So, in order to keep us in line, Boris had his lackeys use some super-advanced, never-released-to-the-general-public programming, to modify parts of my memory, such as my last name. They did the same with Kai, except on a more extreme scale. They not only modified some of his memories, they erased most of it completely and replaced those memories with fake memories they implanted into his brain. I think they implanted memories of his home here being horrible and abusive."

            "That's the most outrageous thing I've ever heard." Julien said flatly. "Why would he be reacting _now_, then?" He paused. "All Sebastien told me was that it was beneficial for his health to continue this."

            "Yeah, because the programming needs updating every month." Alec answered. "The way they kept the programming in our brains was with little wires that run through each area of the brain. When the programming begins to subside, then the wires start sending off electric shocks, which, in the abbey, were picked up by radar. However, outside the abbey, they just give you increasingly painful headaches and frankly put, Boris doesn't care once you're gone. Kai had that horrible migraine when we arrived, so my guess is, judging by the severity of the shock waves, that he's probably known it needed updating for a couple of days. My programming has long since stopped, since I've been sort of on the run for a year. I really ached for a _really_ long while, but I guess the wires just got exhausted."

            "So you're cyborgs?" Rei asked.

            "No," Alec responded forcefully. "Cyborgs have a lot more than just memory modification. _We just have little itsy-bitsy wires running through our brains."_

            "What was with the rebinding?" Rei asked.

            "Yeah, that's the other thing," Alec admitted. "Even after all the memory stuff, we _still weren't mindless minions, so they had to use more technology, called 'spirit-binding'. What this did, was, pretty much literally bound our spirits into one tiny corner of our minds, until the spirit wasn't really capable of making any decisions. This needed to be updated every month as well."_

            Rei shuddered. "So how long does this normally last?"

            "About 5 hours or so, I guess," Julien shrugged, plopping down on the ground with the laptop. "He's usually asleep for a while after that, too, so no point really, in sticking around here, so we may as well go sort this out. Alexei, go get the others at the main house."

            "No need," Glen Yvan responded, walking in. "We heard the entire thing. Why is this still going on?"

            "We busted out Biovolt last year, though," Max whined. "They closed down Balkoff Abbey."

            "You don't seriously think that was the only training facility Biovolt had?" Alec scorned. "They've got them all over the globe. Only Voltaire knows exactly which facilities are his."

            "Goody." Tyson muttered.

            It took a few hours, but finally, the whole story finally got out. At the end, Dak was ready to go and rip the electrodes off that instant, but Alec talked him out of it. "It'd only do worse damage. It could wipe out his entire memory, it could blow his brain apart, it could turn him into some sort of mindless monster, it could paralyze him, it could ki—"

            "Okay, I get it!" Dak groaned.

            "What are the side effects of this, Alexei?" Laili asked, directing the question at Alec, who looked as though he had a slight headache. "Are you all right?"

            "Yeah, it's just backlash I guess. Tiny headache, I get 'em sometimes. Doesn't really hurt. Any way, the side effects are he's _pretty_ groggy when he first wakes, usually he's a bit on the irritated, violent side and most of the time, he'll just sleep a lot. Trust me, this is a good thing for him to sleep twenty hours a day or something like that. Oh! And don't be surprised at his expression."

            "Expression?" Dak asked.

            "He'll kinda look like he's… I doubt you've ever seen a druggie on his high?"

            "Nope."

            "A really distant expression like he's looking into some other galaxy, his eyes are unfocused and his face will be kinda flushed, but reeeeally pale at the same time."

            "That's a complete oxymoron, Alexei," Isobel pointed out.

            "Wait until you see it," Alec assured her.

            A incoherent mumble from the living room made the whole strangely silent group whirl around.

            Alec stood up and caught Kai's arm as he went to stand up. "Hold it, Kai."

            "Lemme go, Alec," Kai mumbled thickly, succeeding in elbowing Alec in the side, using his captivated arm.

            "Mm-hmm," Alec said non-committedly as he cautiously kept his distance from Kai, though he didn't release Kai's arm.

            "…ment," was all Alec could understand of Kai's next statement.

            "I'm not readin' you, Kai." Alec told him.

            Rei came over from the kitchen and said calmly, "We're not going to make it, Kai. We've already missed most of the tournament."

            Kai sat upright in a flash of slate. He let a long string of words in various foreign languages, causing Julien to look appalled and Alec to look impressed.

            "That is one impressive vocabulary," he said in admiration. "I didn't know you could talk like that."

            "Don't even start with it, Kai," Julien warned. "Just because most of the people here can't understand what you're saying doesn't mean they don't get the gist of it."

            Kai glared at him through heavy eyelids. "Don't bug me." he sighed. "Well, at least it was only a regional. We still get to go to the nationals."

            "Wonderful," Tyson mumbled.

            Max grinned. "That's a couple of months away. WHOO! Vacation time!!!"

            "Don't even think about it, Max," Kai snapped. "We're not disregarding the training schedule."

            "Nuts." Max muttered, smile fading.

            The next morning, Chief awoke to the sounds of arguments from the master bedroom. The three younger boys had pulled out the hide-a-bed in the living room and collapsed in fatigue. Alexei had gone home with his parents. Since Rei was pretty much the only one who was least likely to bug Kai, he got the honours of rooming with him.

            "…honestly, Kai, I can't believe you!"

            "I'm fine, Rei, now go get the others up!"

            "There's no way you can be back to normal yet."

            "Normal? What's that?"

            "Don't start with the evading-the-question act, Kai. You're still not recovered."

            "Ridiculous," Kai finally proclaimed and stormed out of the room fuming. "Oh, good, Kenny, you're up. Get Tyson and Max up. We start training in half an hour."

            "Kai, it's 6 in the morning," Chief protested, yawning. Rei emerged from the bedroom, long unwrapped hair fuzzy and wavy and eyes sleep-heavy.

            "Yeah, Kai, it's 6 in the morning," Rei echoed.

            "This is new to you?" Kai asked, opening the fridge to find the juice. "Now stop arguing before I tape your collective mouths shut. TYSON! MAX!"

            "Wha—ah!" Tyson yelped, jumping upright and causing Max to tumble onto the cold hard-wood floor.

            "AIIIIIEEE!!" Max screeched, scrambling up off the ground. "What was that for, you baka????!!!"

            "Sorry Maxie." Tyson apologized, tugging his baseball cap on over his tousled hair. "Rei, you look like a girl."

            "Shut up, Tomato Head." Rei grumbled. Tyson flushed bright red and mumbled something about genetics. Max, now apparently recovered from his rude awakening, giggled as the two tried to figure out something else to insult the other with.

            "Guys!" Kai interrupted. "Training in twenty minutes. Get up. Whatever you haven't accomplished in the next twenty minutes can wait until tonight."

            "I call dibs on the bathroom!" Rei yelled, dashing for the bathroom and locking it behind him.

            "Hey, ten minutes, man!" Chief howled.

            "Hey, it takes ten minutes to wash my hair alone!" Rei whined through the sounds of running water.

            "Wrap it out here!" Max added.

            "Fine!"

            "Fine!"

            "Fine!"

            "Fine!"

            "Guys!!"

            "Sorry Kai!"

            With some difficulty, Kai managed to collect his team and get them ready for training in twenty minutes. Breakfast was accelerated, as in Tyson and Max whining because all Kai would give them was a slice of dry toast and a juice box for breakfast, and that had to be eaten while training.

            "Shut it, guys," Rei said, noticing Kai was looking a little drowsy and thus irritated. "Why _are we up this early anyhow? And why are we still here, come to think of it, if we're not competing in the tournament anymore?"_

            "We are," Kai responded. "We leave in an hour. That's why we're getting in training now."

            "But I thought," Chief whined.

            "I called the officials earlier today," Kai responded. "They've excused the absence, since we weren't competing that day any way."

            "Fine." Tyson mumbled. "C'mon guys, let's get training."

            "That's more like it," Kai said, satisfied.

            Getting sick of his teammate's fuss over him, Kai indulged their wishes and slept for the hour-long ride out to Sunsrest, and was almost back to his normal self by the time the tournament started. Maybe a little more irritable than usual.

            "Max, Draciel's attack ring is getting dull. Replace it now."

            "Tyson, stop whining, you're not four years old."

            "Rei, go get Kenny to readjust Driger's balance ring."

            "Kenny! Get your head out of the clouds and help me here!"

            "Max, I mean it. Replace Draciel's attack ring _now_."

            "Tyson! One more whiny comment out of you and I give your lunch to some kid in the crowds."

            "Rei, Driger's _still off-balance."_

            "KENNY!"

            "Max! All right, that's it. Max, Rei, give me Draciel and Driger. Somebody get Tyson out of my sight now unless you're intent on letting rip him limb from limb. And Kenny, go somewhere else. What did I ever do to deserve teammates like you?"

            "Yeesh, somebody's touchy today." Tyson muttered as a startled Rei and Max dragged him from the room.

            "Welcome Beyblade fans, to DAY TWO of the Sunsrest Regional Tournament! Our first battle starts in five minutes, between the Bladebreakers and the Eternals!"

            "Max, there's Draciel. Careful! The attack ring's sharp."

            "You're telling me," Max mumbled, sticking his sliced finger in his mouth.

            "Take your finger out of your mouth, you look like a toddler. Get a bandage. Rei, here's Driger. Careful not to dislodge the balance ring."

            "Gotcha, Kai," Rei answered, carefully reclaiming Driger.

            "Now please behave yourselves." Kai sighed as he seated himself on the bench.

            "When have we ever not?" Tyson asked. He shut up when Kai sent him a withering glare.

            The day passed fairly uneventfully, as far as Beyblade battles went nowadays: the Bladebreakers thrashed their opponents easily and it was so typical that Kai nearly fell asleep on the bench. He actually did once, but a gentle poke in the side from Rei woke him.

            "Based on the attitudes of you five, I'd say you won today?" Dak asked as the team piled into the van.

            "You'd guess right." Rei answered, grinning. 

"We kicked major butt!" Max crowed.

Tyson nodded. "Didn't we, Kai?" He poked Kai in the shoulderblade, but the poor guy had already fallen back asleep. "That's the second time today," he groused.

"Oh, let the poor boy sleep," Dak said warningly. "What time were you guys up since this morning?"

"6, but he was probably up earlier," Chief answered.

"There you go."


	8. Tokyo For A Day

Far From Here

A/N: Eep! Exams start next week! O.O

DISCLAIMER: You know whom I own.

**Chapter 8: Tokyo For A Day**

            "I just don't understand it, Dak!" Laili said late one night, about a month later.

            "What don't you understand, dearest?" Dak yawned, rolling over to face his wife.

            "Kai!"

            "Oh, not this again..." Dak groaned. "Laili, we've discussed this already. It's been ten years of brainwashing, you shouldn't have expected him to be exactly the same."

            "I don't!" Laili protested. "It's just... he's so quiet. It's like he's an empty shell and... and..."

            "I know, I know," Dak said, sitting up. "We'll just have to give him some time to adjust."

            "But he doesn't _talk_ to us!" Laili persisted.

            "Now _that's normal." Dak answered. "_I _didn't talk to __my parents when I was 15 either."_

            "I still don't believe they're making me go," Kai said to Alec a few days later as the two boarded the bus headed for Sunsrest High.

            "Did you tell them you already have your diploma?" Alec asked.

            "I tried," Kai admitted. "They refused to believe me. Which I'm not surprised at."

            "Considering you're 15, yeah." Alec agreed.

            "Not that," Kai corrected. "Because they would gladly get rid of me, if they legally could."

            Alec sighed. He hated it when their conversation turned this direction. He was hoping after Kai went through his de-brainwashing next week, the truth would return. "Kai..."

            "Oh, fine," Kai sighed. "Guess I'm going to have to wander around Sunsrest on my own then for today."

            "I'll go!" Alec immediately offered. "I went through ten years of my life with random education, I don't see the point in it."

            "All right," Kai grinned, which would've scared the bejeebers out of the Bladebreakers, but just slightly unnerved Alec. Every time Kai had grinned like that, it usually could be spelled in seven letters: T-R-O-U-B-L-E.

            Then again, Alec was usually the one trying to talk Kai into it.

*Two months later*

            "Kai, come on!" Dak called. "We need to go now if we're going to make it to Tokyo in time."

            "I'm coming," Kai grumbled, coming out of the house, followed by Laili, carrying her overnight bag. The three were heading to Tokyo for Laili's inducement, and to see whether Julien would be able to find anything for Kai's headaches, which seemed to have gone on longer than Alec had thought they would.

            The only good thing, as far as Dak was concerned, about this whole fiasco was that they knew Kai was alive. He refused to speak a word to them if it wasn't required; he was constantly disappearing, far more often than any other teen in Dawnfaith, including Alec. They still didn't have a clue what he did in those long hours.

            Laili, on the other hand, appeared to be in seventh heaven. She was certain that once the brain-tamperings were worn off, he would be the charming and chatty little boy he had been when he disappeared. Since it had been worry and shock and upset that had made her lose the last three babies, Dak didn't want to do anything that might jeopardize this one. That included telling her the compromise he and Kai had made yesterday.

            "Kai!" Max shrieked as the door opened to the Beyblade dish in his basement.

            "Kai?" Tyson and Chief said as one, whirling around.

            "Kai." Rei affirmed.

            "Yes, I know I'm Kai." Kai grumbled good-naturedly, even as his teammates dropped Beyblades and surrounded him.

            "You're back you're back you're back you're back you're back you're back…" Max kept saying over and over again, fairly jumping with excitement.

            "Did someone give him sugar this morning?" Kai asked.

            "Nooo…" Max answered brightly.

            "Are you back for good, Kai?" Tyson asked. "'Cause—"

            "We suck," Rei interrupted. "We need you here."

            "Well," Kai sighed. "I'm not sure whether or not I'll be coming back yet. I'll be in town for a couple of days, I think."

            "You _think." Chief repeated disbelievingly._

            Kai shrugged. "Whatever, I'll explain later. Now, while I'm here, let me see how badly you've gone off-track."

            "You have such confidence in us," Rei muttered.

            "Pick up your launchers _now." Kai repeated._

            "Yessir, Captain Grumpy-Pants." Tyson grinned and ducked as Kai swung a good-natured right hook at his head.

            It took nearly an entire two hours to get Kai to fix the bad habits his teammates had fallen into. When he was convinced their performance was satisfactory and deserved lunch, he allowed them to drag him off to the pizza parlour across the street.

            "We always go here for lunch, 'cause Dad knows the owner and he always gets us GREAT discounts." Max informed the captain.

            Kai shuddered. "I hate pizza."

            "It's not all pizza," Rei assured him. "Trust me, even I get tired of pizza after a while."

            "I hate pizza." Kai repeated.

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()

A/N: Yay! Exams are over! Hee hee hee… ^______________________^


	9. Unspoken Pain

Far From Here

DISCLAIMER: You know whom I own. Dak, Laili, Alec, Zada…

**Chapter 9: Unspoken Pain**

_Eleven months later… (March 2004)_

**There are some times when I truly do hate my life. Sometimes I can't figure out who I really am. Am I Kai Camden, the Tyson/Max combination (which seriously scares me, since they're both hardly tolerable separate)? Or am I Kai Hiwatari, world champion Beyblader who doesn't need anybody? Or am I some strange mix of the two? Which one is the real me?**

            The annoying beeping of his installed cellular phone brought 16-year-old Kai out of his electronic journal entry. "Who is it?" he asked, clicking on the vid-phone icon.

            "Hey, Kai!" Rei cheerfully called.

            "Aren't you supposed to be in school?" Kai asked suspiciously.

            "Home schooled!" Rei crowed triumphantly. "Nami got tired of me, so she sent me off while she goes and screams outside. And uh, Kai?" 

"Yeah?"

"You look entirely too domestic. It scares me."

"What?"

"You have a kid crawling on your back."

"Oh." Kai said, twisting his head around to find his eleven-month-old sister clambering up onto his back. "Zada, get off." The toddler refused to comply and Kai finally sighed, "Fine, be that way." He turned back to the screen.

"Any way." Rei continued. "What about Alec?"

Kai scoffed. "He's back into the crowds out here. I think it's the school that's doing it for him. Big Man On Campus, he is. Forgotten all about dear old Kai."

"Aw, it's okay. We haven't forgotten you." Rei comforted.

"You better not have." Kai threatened good-naturedly. "Because I'm coming out to Tokyo this weekend. Honestly, do you guys even bother training when I'm not in?"

"I do," Rei offered evasively. "I'm not always in Tokyo either."

"I didn't doubt _you_," Kai grumbled. "It's Tyson and Max and their ultra-big egos _I'm worried about."_

"Mm-hmm." Rei agreed. There was an irritated voice in the background and Rei said hurriedly, "Okay, I have to go, but I'll see you this weekend."

"Bye." Kai closed the screen and continued to write.

**And Alec. Don't even get me started on him. Mr. "Explain-why-you-abandoned-us" has committed willful mutiny. At least I didn't know it. I mean, my best friend through childhood, fellow Beyblade… learner, and all of a sudden I don't exist anymore. It HURTS.**

_Later that night…_

            "Hey, Kai, we're back!" Dak called as the door shut in the kitchen.

            "Hmm." Came the answer of his stepson from the den.

            "Where's Zada?" Laili asked, sticking her head into the den. Kai was still immersed in his laptop, typing up a storm. (A/N: I know, it sounds more like Chief, but is it a little late to say the characters are a bit OOC?)

            "Nap." Kai answered, not bothering to look up.

            Laili left to go upstairs and Dak entered the den and sat down just as Kai closed the computer. "Kai, can I speak with you for a moment?"

            "Hmm." Kai answered.

            "Like as in a real conversation where you say more than monosyllabic words." Dak said wryly.

            "All right." Kai conceded.

            There was silence for a moment before Dak finally said, "You want to go to Tokyo to stay, don't you?"

            "Maybe."

            "You know, I would let you. You've stayed longer than we agreed on. We said a year, it's been almost one and a half."

            "Hmm."

            "Kai, why are you acting like this?" Dak asked.

            Kai shrugged. "Because it's in my nature?"

            "Finally, more than one syllable." Dak muttered. "This goes beyond nature, Kai. What's going on?"

            "Dunno. Maybe I just don't know who to believe."

****

**I remember, I used to lie in bed at the abbey and hope that when I woke up, I'd be back in my own bed in the cabin, that the abbey and all that happened in it was just a nightmare. All I would have to do get out of bed and climb into Dak and Mama's bed and everything would be fine, because nothing could happen.**

**But everything did happen. I got trapped, trapped by their weird, twisted experiments, trapped by my own naiveté and by my thirst for power, and I guess, slowly anything that had ever meant anything to me went away. Only Dranzer stayed.**

****

_*1996*_

_            "Hey, Alec! Hurry up or we'll be late!" 8-year-old Tala moaned, hopping from foot to foot._

_            "Sir won't be too pleased," Bryan added._

_            "I'll come when I'm good and ready," Alec said calmly. "If you guys are so scared of Sir, you go on ahead."_

_            "You're going to be in for a whipping, Alec." Kai warned._

_            "Hmm-mmm." Alec said, clearly unimpressed. "But Sir will decide it was all your fault and decide you need discipline. Not a stroke will land on me."_

_            "Exactly." Kai groaned. "I'm still trying to stop bleeding from last night's whipping. Can't you just listen to Sir for once? Even for just today?"_

_            "I don't like him," Alec responded, standing up. "I don't respect him."_

_            "Yeah, well, I have great respect for that whip and the person who uses it, so let's GO!" Kai whined, tugging at Alec's sleeve._

_            "B13 R13, you arrive late for your drills once again." Sir sighed._

_            "We apologize, Sir," all four boys chorused together._

_            "Apologies are excuses, and I don't accept excuses." Sir snapped. "For your lateness, B13 R13 F4, you will receive 20 lashes. For the lateness of your comrades, 20 lashes each. You have a legacy to uphold, B13 R13 F4, and I will not tolerate any behaviour not fitting the station you are destined to hold. That will be another 15 lashes. And all four of you will be confined to your dormitory for the remainder of the day."_

_            Kai hung his head and while Tala and Bryan looked petrified, Alec looked immediately contrite. Because he had dawdled, Kai was going to get 95 lashes on top of the 100 he'd received last night._

_            When the drills had finished, Tala, Bryan and Alec returned to their dormitory to await the arrival of Doctor Resven, the only genuine medical doctor in the abbey and a decent person, who seemed to know before they did when Kai returned from the punishment cell._

_            He arrived in about five minutes with Kai draped over his shoulder, closing the door behind him._

_            Throughout Doctor Resven's tending to the newest wounds on Kai's already-horribly scarred back, all three boys were constantly apologizing to Kai. Alec himself was in tears and flinched along with Kai every time Doctor Resven touched Kai's skin._

_            "All right, Kai." Doctor Resven said finally, standing up. "I'm going to leave you a couple of pain-killers. Make sure you hide them well. You can take them at lights-out if your back still hurts then. Try not to sleep on your back, okay?"_

_            Kai nodded silently, a stray tear sliding down his cheek. "Thank you, Doctor Resven." He whispered as the door closed again and locked the four boys into the windowless cell, lit only by a single light bulb swinging forlornly on the ceiling._

*Sunsrest High School, English class*

            "Mrs. Eners, do I really need to do this assignment?" Alec asked charmingly, setting the outline sheet back down on her desk.

            "If you want to pass this course, Mr. Yvan, I strongly suggest you do this assignment, and do it well." Mrs. Eners responded, not bothering to look at Alec.

            Alec grumbled as he climbed onto the bus as it hurtled out of the drive.

            "Hey, Alec, did you get out of the assignment?" Aaron asked as Alec swung into the seat.

            "No." Alec grumbled again. "Of course, this is the one teacher I can't charm into relieving me. She's never bought my line about my traumatic past." He scoffed.

            "So what do you plan on doing?" Aaron asked. "You of all people should have an interesting enough answer." He took out his own sheet, identical to Alec's.

**Assignment: an autobiography**

**Due Date: May 15, 2004**

**Title: at your own discretion**

**Topics that MUST be included:**

**Introduction: Birth******

**~ birthdate **

**~ birthplace **

**~ parents**

**Body Paragraph 1: Early Years**

**~ First word**

**~ First steps**

**~ other information pertaining to the ages birth - 4 years, including parents' **

**   divorces/remarriage, new siblings, moves…**

**~ include ONE short anecdote if you want**

**Body Paragraph 2: Childhood**

**~ date you started education**

**~ early favourites (colours, shows, activities…)**

**~ other information pertaining to the ages 5 - 12 years, including parents' **

**   divorces/remarriage, new siblings, moves…**

**~ you MUST include one anecdote**

**Body Paragraph 3: Present Day**

**~ present favourites**

**~ other information pertaining to the ages 13 - present, including parents' **

**   divorces/remarriage, new siblings, moves…**

**~ you MUST include one anecdote**

**Supplementary Body Paragraphs Subjects (at an additional 5 points each):**

**~ a memory you wish never happened (embarrassing moments, etc.)**

**~ a memory that will stay with you forever**

**~ at your discretion**

**Conclusion: Future**

**~ reflections on past**

**~ plans for the future**

****KEEP IT ALL CLEAN!!!****

            "I can't believe this!" Alec fumed as he banged into the kitchen of the Yvan household, with his 10-year-old brother and 8-year-old sister right behind him. "It's ridiculous! Who wants to spill the intimate details of their private lives to their teachers, _knowing that they have to deal with this teacher another two and a half years, _and_ that they don't know where this essay is going!"_

            "What's wrong, Alec?" Isobel asked, entering the kitchen. "Bad day at school?"

            "No, bad school assignment!" Alec hissed. "An autobiography, Mother! An _autobiography_, with REQUIRED anecdotes!"

            "Alec, you can't keep it bottled up forever." Isobel said gently, ushering the younger children out. "You knew it was coming eventually. And Kai will have to write one as well."

            "No he won't." Alec muttered. "Kai's not in school."

            "He's not?" Isobel asked suspiciously. "He's skipping?"

            "No, he's already graduated." Alec answered. "Got his diploma a few years ago."

            "Is it true, what Alec is telling me?" Isobel asked Laili, when she went over to the Camden household later that evening, dragging Jekyll and Calypso with her. 8-year-old Calypso was quite taken with Baby Zada, but 10-year-old Jekyll was bored out of his mind and asked to go outside.

            "Stay in the yard, Jekyll." Isobel responded, then turned back to Laili. "Alec was telling me that Kai hasn't been going to school."

            "He hasn't?" Laili repeated.

            "Yes, Alec told me he's already received his high school diploma. I thought I'd run it past you." Isobel said.

            "Well, _this is news." Laili muttered. "While it shouldn't be, it is." She sighed in disgust as she sat down. She looked up sharply as Dak came in, and, having overheard the last part of the conversation, tried to slip back out unnoticed. "_Dak_."_

            "Yes, dear?" Dak asked innocently.

            "Did you know about this?"

            "About what?" Dak asked uneasily, with the distinct expression of a guilty schoolboy who had just caught dipping the pigtails of the girl in front of him in the inkwell.

            "You _have been taking Kai to school, haven't you?"_

            "Y—y—y—yes." Dak stammered.

            "Are you lying to me?" Laili asked again.

            "Yes." Dak admitted.

            "You haven't been taking Kai to school?"

            "No."

            "Where have you been taking him, then?"

            "Into Tokyo with me."

            "WHAT?!"

            "Well, I, I, there's no real point in him going to school when he doesn't need to, is there?"

            "Dak, I don't believe you!" Laili nearly shrieked. "You've been _lying_ to me the whole year??!! KAI!"

**Talk about a soap opera. Sure, my life has never been normal like Kenny's is normal, but I had a routine going. Then comes that _stupid_ Sunsrest Tournament. I am more than willing to bet that I probably would've been better off the way I was, just dealing with Grandfather's demented lifestyle as it came and went and then maybe one day, when I was no longer a minor, I would try and find them. Maybe not. Who knows?**

            Kai was jolted out of yet another electronic journal entry by Laili's screech from downstairs.

**And here comes another lecture on not skipping school. No doubt Alec squealed to his gossip of a mother who then informed mine.**

            Kai closed the computer and ambled downstairs.

            Once Laili had once again finished the lecture on the importance of education and socialization with his peers, Kai returned to his journal entry thoroughly disgruntled.

**And I was actually in a pretty good mood today, too. So much for that. And in about two seconds, Dak's going to enter the room and give me a slighter more gentler lecture.**

            "Kai, can I come in?" Dak's voice came from outside the door.

**Told you so.**

            "Sure." Kai grumbled, closing the laptop again.


	10. Alec, Kai and Their Essays

Far From Here

A/N: Sorry about such a long wait, but I have three or four projects for school going on at the same time here… let me get into a rhythm (and find my train of thought for this fic) and maybe I can update more often.

DISCLAIMER: I own only whom I own.

**Chapter 10: Alec, Kai And Their Essays**

            "Hey, I got my essay back!" Alec yelled to his family a month later. He plunked it down triumphantly on his desk in the bedroom and ran out to go announce his mark to his parents.

            "Your essay, Kai?" Laili asked, as Kai entered the kitchen. "You were supposed to have gotten it back today, weren't you?"

            "I did," Kai answered indifferently. "Got exactly what I thought I would."

            "What'd you get?" Dak asked.

            "Nothing." Kai answered.

            "You handed it in, didn't you?" Laili asked worriedly.

            "Yeah." Kai answered, letting Dak take the essay. Dak flipped it open and started laughing hysterically.


	11. Kai's Essay And why Dak laughed so hard!

Far From Here

A/N: All right. The next two chapters are sort of 'filler chapters' whilst I try and retrieve the plotline.

DISCLAIMER: I own whom I own. Geez, you'd think you'd figure that out by now.

**Chapter 11: Kai's Essay (and why Dak laughed so hard)**

_This is Kai's full and complete essay for Mrs. Eners (see chapter 9. Remember the autobiography Alec was freaking out about? Yeah. Kai had to do that too, because he was forced to go back to school for rest of the year.)_

            My life is none of your business.

A/N: Next chapter: Alec's Essay! In its entirety. And it's not a one-liner like Kai's.


	12. Alec's Essay: Oops Try Again

Far From Here

A/N: I'm sorry. I couldn't resist that essay-thing for Kai. I contemplated actually doing it, but then I realized that Kai's still unsure about his past. And would Kai really include the stuff she was asking?

DISCLAIMER: (enter what I've been saying for the past 11 chapters here)

**Chapter 12: Alec's Essay (not a one-liner)**

_This is Alec's full and complete essay for Mrs. Eners (see chapter 9.)_

"Oops. Try Again."

            Nobody in Dawnfaith ever really knew just how much trouble they were getting themselves into on the 31st of December, 1987. See, that was the day I was born. My parents, Glen and Isobel Yvan, decided to name me Alexei Emlyn. Alexei is a Russian form of Alexander, which means ' great protector' and Emlyn is a variant of Emil, which means 'charming'. So I am supposed to be a charming protector. But I think the evidence of my later years would contradict this statement.

            I spoke my first words when I was 12 months old. Coincidentally, it was at that same time that I took my first steps. My parents tell me that I had spotted a cake that was supposed to be split between a neighbour's son and I for our first birthdays and I had stood up and took two steps before falling back down and simply said, "Oops. Try again." Nothing very big happened in my early years, unless you count my discovering that if you pull the cat's tail, it scratches you and leaves huge gashes all the way down your arm that took months to go away. That happened when I was about four years old, and I blame Kai and his recklessness for that. You could easily say that Kai and myself were best friends. We lived so close to each other and were so close in age that we just sort of hung out together. That would prove to be the one part of my life that would change it forever.

            Only a few months before our fifth birthdays, Kai had been over at my house to play. For some unknown reason, possibly due to five-year-old logic, which isn't really logic at all but random times of sporadic thought, we decided to head over to Kai's house. When we had reached the end of my driveway, a big black car had pulled up and dragged us both into its evil depths. That was the car that carried probably what you could call the end of my innocence. It carried me to the airport, which in turn trapped me in an airplane and flew me clear across the globe to Russia. Then another big black car came and hauled me off to the dark and frightening place known Balkoff Abbey. There, they fiddled around with my brain. I never really completely understand the reasoning behind all this torture. At any rate, they modified my memory and made me believe that my last name was truly Tchaikov, and assigned me my identity number, which would serve me as a name within the abbey for eight years: B13 R13 F3, which stood for **Block 13, **R**oom 13, ****Fleeter 3. While I was taught the art of Beyblading for world domination, my parents had reluctantly procreated twice more. And I think that my disappearance made them lose some steps going upstairs, if you know what I mean. Who in their right mind, names their kids Jekyll and Calypso? I mean, that's just stupid!**

            When I turned 13, I had finally decided that I had had enough of Balkoff Abbey. Somehow, and to this day I still haven't figured out how, I managed to convince Kai to escape the abbey with me. Have you ever been 13 years old, terrified of every shadow you see, including your own; and on the run from evil henchmen of your best friend's grandfather who could easily snap your neck in half and would probably do so when they caught you, and they would have no probably with it either because you had seen them do this to some poor unfortunate fleeter the day before? That was me. I was completely freaked out and skittish. Somehow Kai and I got separated before long, and I supposed that he must've have negated his grandfather's rage somehow, because he doesn't seem too much the worse for wear. I on the other hand, spent the next year of my life in exile, trying desperately to hitch my way back home and fighting against my faltering brainwashing. I finally found my way back to Dawnfaith in December of 2003.

            If there's one thing in my life I wish that I could change, it would always have to be my attitude at the abbey. I say this not out of fear, but out of regret for how I ruthlessly used my best friend in the world to bear the punishments that justly should have landed on me. With that decision, I single-handedly changed the entire course of our friendship from its past direction to its present nonexistence. Because of what I did as a child, I was partially responsible for the messed-up specimen of humankind that is Kai today. And so, in looking to the future, I can see two things: I can see future storms with he who was once the person closest to me and is now distant, and I can see clear skies and reconciliation with my family.


End file.
